Author Kevin Barry (pictured) and his wife Olivia Smith have announced the line-up for their Winter Papers annual, which will be with us in time for Christmas thusly solving all your pressie problems in one foul swoop.

Along with a new short story from Kevin himself, Old Stock, there will be new works of fiction from the likes Max Porter, Eimear Ryan, Thomas Morris, Alé Mercado, Andrew Meehan, John Kelly, Sarah Maria Griffin, Claire Kilroy, Siobhán Mannion, Sinéad Gleeson, Lisa McInerney and Lucy Caldwell. Also looking like right, riveting reads are Lisa Hannigan in conversation with Paul Murray; Siobhán Kane’s face to face with Kevin Rowland; a Peter Murphy interview with Bruce Robinson, and Kevin and Sean Lynch’s chinwag with veteran Irish filmmaker Bob Quinn.

If it’s half as good as last year’s, we’re all in for a serious cockle-warming treat!

Kevin Barry wins IMPAC

Kevin Barry wins Author's Club Best First Novel Award

Tales from the darkside

€36,000 better off after winning the Sunday Times EFG Private Bank Award, Kevin Barry has been hailed as one of the finest Irish writers of his generation. In an extraordinarily frank interview, he talks LSD, Chinese marriage scams, death threats, the IRA and daffodil theft with his old Limerick colleague Stuart Clark.